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TONS OF WWE NETWORK NOTES AND NEWS, GOOD AND BAD

By Mike Johnson on 2014-02-26 08:11:45
WWE Network announced yesterday that they believed they would have VOD issues taken care of by 6 PM yesterday. As of this morning, at least on my Roku, things has improved in terms of the VOD material loading quickly but the streams would stop and crash within 5-15 minutes. As I said yesterday, when it's new ground, there are going to be problems and nothing is perfect when it opened. Disneyland's initial reviews locally were based on what a failure it was for Walt Disney.

It should be noted, however, that the Network's live stream of programming has been, at least in my experience, absolutely flawless in terms of smoothness of the stream and HD picture quality.

Since WWE isn't planning on selling any advertising or sponsorship slots until next year, in between the programs have been WWE Youtube series (WWE Inbox, Outside the Ring) as well as profile pieces on talent (Goldust), WWE Hall of Fame induction announcement videos (Jake Roberts, Lita) and shorter clips called "Best of the Worst" (I've seen the Playboy Buddy Rose blow-away diet and The Shockmaster debut) as well as promotional material for other shows airing on the Network.

Anyone who signed up for a trial WWE Network membership was not charged $9.99 as readers claimed. What it was is that WWE put a hold charge on the card, similar to what a rental car company or a hotel would do, to make sure the card was valid, then refunded the charge the same day. That is pretty standard, so anyone freaking out should be fine.

In sad news for Canadian fans, the loophole that allowed them to stream the WWE Network via AppleTV has been closed. I've heard from readers in France and Switzerland who were able to get it for a short time before they were locked out as well.

In regard to a question we've gotten a lot in the last few days, the material on the Network is in HD but if the shows were originally filmed in standard definition, that is what they are broadcast in. So, if you were hoping for HD quality ECW or WCW, well, that's not happening.

The Network announced the following this morning: "We are working aggressively to fix log-in issues on the WWE Network application that are effecting viewers with accounts created in the last 24 hours. We will provide an update shortly."

;Kevin sent the following links to articles covering the Network launch:

http://www.multichannel.com/distribution/wwe-network-wriggles-out-streaming-hold/148507

http://www.awfulannouncing.com/2014/february/the-wwe-network-launch-is-off-to-a-rough-start.html

http://whatculture.com/wwe/wwe-network-problems-continue-amid-overwhelming-demand.php

 

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